Sherlock's Sweetheart
by Fallen-Autumn-Leaves
Summary: Penelope Constance Fielding becomes a part of 221B Baker Street. Unbeknownst to Sherlock, she is hired to clean the flat. John is shocked, Mrs. Hudson is elated, and Sherlock...well, Sherlock is Sherlock. SherlockxOC
1. Finding the Place

**I am a bad person, publishing new stories when I haven't updated any others. But I just can't seem to be able to hold these stories back! XD**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Sherlock characters; however, I do own Penelope Fielding.**

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John Watson was tired. Sherlock had spent half the night screeching on his violin and the other half shooting poor Mrs. Hudson's walls.

It was currently 5 in the morning and there was no way he could fall asleep now. With a sigh, he pulled himself from the bed and into clothes. He entered the living room to find Sherlock curled up on the couch with his back to John. Passing Sherlock with little more than a glance, John decided to take a walk. He wound his jacket tightly around him and ventured out into the brisk morning air.

The doctor made his way to a small coffee shop not too far away. It was situated on a corner and was fashioned with wrought-iron tables out front. He was surprised to see someone sitting out front. He thought he recognized the woman, long, curly black hair and warm green eyes. She sat at the table, the umbrella above her throwing her in what little shade there was this early in the morning. Her head was bowed and her hands were tangled together with worry. She wore a black and white striped sun dress and a gray handkerchief to hold her hair away from her gentle face.

As John approached, the woman raised her eyes to him and their gazes locked.

"Are you alright, miss?" he asked concerned.

A small smile touched her lips as she replied, "Yes, I'm fine. But, by any chance, could you give me directions?"

"I could try. Where is it you need to go?"

"I'm heading to my newest employer's place. Today's my first day and I am incredibly lost. I'm looking for 221B Baker Street, do you know where that is?"

John's eyes widened in surprise! "Actually, I can do better than that. I can take you to 221B. I live there, you see."

"Oh! Would you be so kind?" He nodded and helped her up as she smiled wider. "I'm Penelope Feilding."

"John Watson," he said and they shook hands. "If you don't mind me asking, who's your employer?"

She rifled through a bright red purse John had just noticed beside her, as they began to walk in the direction of Baker Street. "A Mr. Sherlock Holmes," the woman replied as she read the pink post-it in her hand.

John's steps stuttered and he almost tripped as he regained his stride. "Sherlock?" his eyebrows almost jumped off his face at her nod. "What exactly do you do?"

"I clean."

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**Well there you go! A sort of pilot I guess! Review and let me know what you think... :)**


	2. The First Meeting

It seems that I misspelled Fielding in the first chapter of this story and for that I am sorry. I hope you ignore it.

I would like to dedicate this chapter to **HarleighBeth**!~

Disclaimer: I do not own Sherlock. I do own Penelope though.

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When they arrived at 221B Baker Street, John held the door open for Penelope to enter first. Mrs. Hudson appeared at the bottom of the stairs within seconds.

"Hello, dear. I'm Mrs. Hudson. I assume you're Ms. Fielding?" The girl nodded and Mrs. Hudson continued, "I called and hired you, dear."

A confused expression crossed Penelope's face.

"You hired me? But it says here," a pause as she rifled for that pink post it, "that Mr. Sherlock Holmes hired me."

The older lady laughed, "It's his flat you'll be cleaning. He is convinced I'm his housekeeper. I just can't keep up with it all, dear, and I'll love it if you could help a bit."

Penelope's confusion cleared. "Yes ma'am! I'll be happy to help. If you'd just be so kind as to show me the way, I'll start right this second."

Mrs. Hudson beamed. Turning, she led the way with John and Penelope following.

They stepped into the flat and Mrs Hudson called out to the prone figure on the couch, "Sherlock, there's a nice girl here. She's going to clean the flat for us."

"I don't need her," came the reply.

"Dear, sorry to tell you but you do."

"I have you Mrs. Hudson, why would we need anyone else?"

"I'm not your housekeeper, dear," came the age old retort. Sherlock sighed and sat up, turning to look at Penelope.

Before he could deduce her, she walked up to him and held out a hand, "Hello, Mr. Holmes, I'm Penelope Fielding. It's a pleasure to meet you!" Sherlock tilted his head to the side. "Don't you worry, sir. I'll have this place cleaned up in no time!" she gave him no chance to reply before she placed her large bag on John's armchair and withdrew a featherduster. She tightened the handkercheif over her hair and strode to the mantle above the fireplace. She hummed as she began to work. Mrs' Hudson left the flat while John and Sherlock watched the new addition to the Baker Street group. Within minutes the mantle was spotless. The dust was eleiminated and the wood was shining.

It seemed Penelope didn't even mind the skull.


	3. Sherlock's Deduction

Disclaimer: I do not own Sherlock.

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Eventually, John drifted off to his room to get ready for a lunch date with his current girlfriend. This left Sherlock and Penelope alone in the living room. She didn't seem to mind, or perhaps she didn't notice, Sherlock's calculating stare.

His mind was working furiously. Who was this intriguing woman? Sherlock had to know. He _needed_ to know! He began from the floor and worked his way up:

1) Her shoes were sensible and well worn. She must have had them for a while. They were bright red imitation leather flats. Scuff marks could be seen around the toes where they dragged against the ground when she must have been sitting. Sherlock easily removed the possibility of a nervous habit, the leather was not torn, and she had shown no signs of it when she entered. Also, she was shorter than average, causing most chairs to be too tall for her.

2) Her gray stockings were thick enough to provide warmth from the early morning chill, but thin enough to decrease the discomfort of heavy leg coverings. They were well made but obviously cheap. She seemed to go for quality at a cheap price.

3) The black and white striped dress was patterned just so that an optical illusion occurred to make the waist look smaller and the bust bigger. However, Sherlock noted, on her it retained a conservative look. The skirt was vertically patterned, the top diagonally patterned inward. Where they met they formed an arrow at her waist. A simple cloth belt in the same pattern was tied in a bow. _She used_ _the over and under method, not the bunny ears method to tie it._ It hung to her knees and the sleeves were short. The buttons were tiny black things that gleamed in the light.

4) On her left wrist was a watch. It was a simple affair. The band was black, the clock face a startling white. It was made of stainless steel with tiny rhinestones surrounding it. The face was minutely scratched. The band itself was creased, as it obviously was worn religiously.

5) A ring was on her left index finger. This she removed as she began to clean, leaving a line of white where the skin tanned around the object. The style professed it was a woman's ring, but the style was old fashioned. It was a substantial ring of gold. The band was thin, the setting a block. Inside of the setting was a rectangle of turquoise surrounded by miniscule diamonds. _Perhaps her mother's or grandmother's_, thought Sherlock.

6) Her nails were painted, but not professionally done, in a dark gray. It was both unobtrusive and fashionable. He suspected that they were constantly repainted due to her housekeeping job's taxing demands on her nails.

7) Long, black, curly hair looked healthy and shone. It was held away from her face by a gray handkerchief that matched her stockings. It was patterned in petite flowers that were almost unnoticeable.

8) The woman's skin was well taken care of. She wore little makeup that Sherlock could see, only a small amount of eyeliner around her green eyes. And her lips held a soft smile. _She must enjoy her job well enough_.

9) The warm gleam in her eyes created and approachable feel to the atmosphere around her. Sherlock watched as she cast a curious, but not disgusted or creeped out, look at the skull on the mantle. He was intrigued, most women –or men for that fact—found the skull repulsive. After a brief pause, she picked up the skull and dusted under it. And then she proceeded to dust the skull itself, even inside the eye sockets!

10) His eye was caught by the red bag on John's chair. The bad itself was made of a durable imitation leather. Regardless of its obvious secondhand nature, it was clean. The zipper was undone, showing off an assortment of items. A pink sticky note's corner poked out. He could not however, deduce anything from her handwriting as the note's contents were not visible. Her phone, at least he assumed it was hers, was placed on top. It was an older model and quite scratched. No decals or decorations adorned it, which led him to believe that she was not a technological person. Below it was a wallet in mint condition. _Not an impulsive or frequent spender then_, thought Sherlock.

While Sherlock was busy deducing her, Penelope was spending her time dusting the room. As he snapped out of it, she was just heading to her bag. From which, she withdrew a rag and spray bottle.

"I always carry products with me to my first job for a new employer," she commented to Sherlock, though he was sure it was just idle chitchat.

He stood and headed to the windows, he began to observe the passing world outside. Penelope sprayed the substance on the glass surfaces of the flat and proceeded to wipe it off with the rag.

When she reached Sherlock, she muttered an "Excuse me, Mr. Holmes." He blinked at her and stepped to the side. _Mr. Holmes? By no means was he Mycroft_. She quickly finished and moved to another. He returned to his former place, noticing that the window was both, spotless and streak-less.

She returned the product and rag to her bag, once again turning to Sherlock. "Do you, or perhaps Mrs. Hudson, have a broom I could use?" He directed her to a closet in the hall that contained cleaning supplies. "Oh, good! This makes my job easier." With that, she happily picked up a broom and followed Sherlock back to the living room. After thoroughly sweeping the floor, she carried a bucket full of soapy water into the living room and mopped the wooden floor. He watched as she vacuumed the carpets and continued into the kitchen.

John appeared in the doorway. "Where's Penelope?"

"She is in the kitchen."

"Oh." A pause as he continued to sit in his chair. "Wait!" he cried. "With your science experiments?"

John rushed to the kitchen. Too late as a surprised shriek filled the air.

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_What should she find in the kitchen? Let me know!_


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